How Long Does A Divorce Take?
In her latest Timms blog, Family Law Solicitor, Leonnie Watson, discusses how long the divorce process takes under the new ‘No Fault’ Law…
As most people now know, the divorce law changed in 2022. The change now allows couples to end their marriage or civil partnership without having to blame each other for the breakdown of their relationship i.e. adultery and unreasonable behaviour. The aim of this new ‘no fault’ divorce is to try to reduce conflict between the parties. However, the Court also don’t want parties to rush into a divorce without thinking it through.
How Long Does The Process Take?
The application is now made online. If all of the procedural requirements have been complied with, the Family Court usually takes about a week or so to confirm that the application has been made. If the other party responds to the application online and promptly, these initial stages of a divorce are usually completed with 3 or 4 weeks. Sometimes, for example, if the other party does not respond or asks to respond on paper, then this can take a little longer.
The longest delay comes at the next stage. Since the change in law, the Family Court has built in a ‘cooling off’ period in the divorce process. This means that the applicant has to wait a minimum of 20 weeks after the divorce application has been made before they can apply for the conditional order. It is not until this has passed that the Family Court will consider whether or not you are entitled to a divorce.
The Court then have to consider the application and set a date for when the conditional order will be granted. This will add a few more weeks – usually 3 to 4 again – to the timescale, but the exact time this will take depends upon how busy the Court are.
Six weeks and a day after the conditional order has been pronounced the applicant can apply for the final order which will end the marriage.
So, in total, provided the divorce is not disputed on a technicality, it will take a minimum of 26 weeks from the date it is issued; in reality the whole process is currently taking about 8 to 10 months from the time the application is made until the Final Order is received.
What If There Are Financial Matters?
If there are financial matters to be agreed this may further delay the final order being pronounced because it is usually advisable to conclude the financial settlement before applying for a final order.
How Can Timms Help?
If you have any questions regarding divorce or any other family law matters, please do not hesitate to get in touch. You can contact me on 01283 214231 or via email at l.watson@timms-law.com. Alternatively, you can visit the Family page of our website here.
December 2023